Two months to go!

Yes, it really is true, in two months my twomarathons project will be over! Probably this is more easily imaginable for you than for me. I've grown accustomed to living with a constant list of people to contact for donations, a constant calculation of when I can fit in my training, and during the last two months a constant anxiety about my knee! The thought that it will come to an end - God willing with the objectives achieved - brings with it a certain lightening of the spirit that fits well with the approach of spring. This is not to suggest that I dislike the project. Through it I've had wonderful opportunities to communicate about some of the things that matter to me, and to experience unexpected generosity. And I've learnt a huge amount about my own (lack of) generosity, and especially about my cultivation of self-reliance as a defence mechanism. Approaching people to ask for help brings the risk of rejection - yet I understand better now how it also brings the hope of communion, the acknowledgement of mutual dependence among the whole human family. I don't find it an exaggeration to say that the continued evolution of humanity hangs on this.

On a more practical plane, there are now 52 days until the Bungay Black Dog Marathon, and 59 until the London Marathon. Donations are approaching two-thirds of the target of £2000 for each charity. Pledges and more vaguely expressed intentions to support the project should help boost those totals significantly, but there is still some way to go, and I'm running out of people to badger! So, put your thinking caps on please, and see if there isn't something you could do to help. I would be delighted to provide you with posters, flyers, sponsorship forms, and literature about the charities, if you have any arena to spread the word!

Things have continued to be less than perfect with my knee, and there have been plenty of times when I've wondered whether all the physio exercises will just be too little too late. However, I'm back to running and at present I'm managing to build up the distance without an increase in pain. This is really encouraging. I'm an extremely determined person (some other adjectives probably come to mind...) so I expect to make it round these marathons, even if not in quite the form I'd envisaged! Maybe you could cheer me on? If you're likely to be in the Bungay area on 19th April or London on 26th, let me know so that I can give you some details of when to expect me where! In my new spirit of acknowledged frailty, I will rejoice in your support!